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ASTHMA |
1 Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
2 Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
3 Department of Medical Science, Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
4 Asthma and Allergy Research Centre, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
5 Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden
6 National Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr E Normann
625C, Heritage Medical Research Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2S2, Canada; erik.normann{at}kbh.uu.se
Background: The proposed association between Chlamydia pneumoniae (Cpn) infection and wheezing needs further clarification.
Methods: Serum samples obtained from 1581 children aged 4 years in a population based cohort were tested for antibodies to Cpn and IgE antibodies to common allergens. Data on environmental factors and disease were collected prospectively from birth.
Results: The occurrence of IgG antibodies to Cpn at 4 years of age was associated with reported wheezing at different ages; however, these findings were most often not significant. In girls, the occurrence of anti-Cpn IgG was associated with wheezing at the ages of 1, 2, and 4 years (odds ratios (ORs) 3.41 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.46 to 7.96), 2.13 (95% CI 1.02 to 4.44), and 2.01 (95% CI 1.14 to 3.54), respectively), and even higher ORs were observed for each age category when only high level antibody responses to Cpn were analysed. At the time of blood sampling the association between anti-Cpn IgG and wheezing was restricted to girls without atopic sensitisation (OR 2.39 (95% CI 1.25 to 4.57). No associations with wheezing were detected in boys, in whom IgE sensitisation was inversely associated with the presence of anti-Cpn IgG (OR 0.49 (95% CI 0.26 to 0.90).
Conclusions: This study suggests an association between evidence of earlier Cpn infection and a history of wheezing in young girls. Infection with Cpn may be an important risk factor for wheezing and possibly for non-atopic asthma, predominantly in girls.
Abbreviations: Cpn, Chlamydia pneumoniae; MIF, microimmunofluorescence
Keywords: allergy; asthma; children; Chlamydia pneumoniae; sex
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Thorax 2006 61: 1029.
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